In my copending patent application, Ser. No. 599,133, entitled "A Combination Scalpel Blade and Incision Irrigator for Ophthalmological use," there is disclosed such a device which involves supporting a cannula so that it may be attached to a conventional scalpel blade to form an acute angle with said scalpel blade so as to permit the washing away of blood and other fluids during surgery.
The trend in modern ophthalmic surgery is to make incisions more posterially away from the bloodless cornea into the sclera. The sclera contains significant blood vessels. The flow of blood from these vessels can prevent the surgeon from observing that portion of the eye in which he wishes to make an incision. The result has been a need for irrigation for these newer surgical methods. This is a problem which is faced not only in the two-step cataract surgical incision, which is done in the sclera, but also is applicable in the large scleral flaps made by surgeons specializing in glaucoma surgery while doing a posterior lip sclerectomy. There also is a need for continuing blood removal controllable by the surgeon in scleral dissections done by surgeons conducting retinal procedures.
This type of surgery is extremely delicate. It is conducted under an operating power microscope and the current state of the art requires the surgeon to direct an assistant to spray sterile saline on the area where the blood is obscuring the surgeon's vision. Considering the space limitations and the extremely delicate nature of the surgery, this is a very unsatisfactory procedure.